How people find us (and what they think they need)
Every week we get people walking into the shop or calling us with one of two questions: "Do you guys carry clip-on tri-bars?" or "Do you fit tri-bars?" Most of them have just bought a road bike, often a used one or an entry-level model, and they've just signed up for their first triathlon.
They're usually runners, swimmers or cycling enthusiasts who've been talked into it by a friend, a family member, or any one of a million outside influences. And they've done their homework: hours of online videos and articles, all full of photos of triathletes tucked into a low, aggressive aero position, looking every bit the professional. In their minds, that's what you have to look like to do a triathlon.
What they don't see is the other eighty percent of the field. The people on borrowed bikes, ill-fitting bikes, or perfectly normal road bikes, trucking through their first triathlon and having a great time doing it. These riders make up the bulk of any given event, but they don't get much coverage. The cameras are pointed at the more marketable end of the race and the professionals. So the new triathlete walks away believing that once they have a road bike, the next step is to buy all the gear that makes it look like the bikes in the photos.
The best bike fitting pathway for beginners
The best way to get through your first triathlon is on a really good-fitting road bike.
That's it. That's the advice. A road bike you can do all of your training on: the Monday, Wednesday and Saturday morning club rides, the social rides, the indoor trainer, and everything else it takes to build the fitness and experience you need to actually enjoy race day. Because there's a lot more to learn than most people expect. Handling the bike around other riders, balancing through corners, getting on and off, reading power data, using clipless pedals, shifting gears, braking. There's a ton to learn about riding a bike, and a bike that fits you properly is where all of that learning happens. The social part is what makes the endless training enjoyable, so group-riding skills are crucial to a new rider as well.
You don't need aero bars or clip-ons to do a triathlon. In fact, having them can work against you early on. Many shop rides and social rides won't allow them, because they're dangerous in a crash and, when you're using them, your hands aren't near the brakes. That's a real hazard when you're riding in a group or drafting other riders, which is exactly where a beginner should be spending their time. Trying to ride in the aerobars also can make the front end of the bike wobbly, and unsafe in crosswinds and while steering around curves and obstacles.
So the pathway we promote here at Urban Pedaler for new triathletes (and new cyclists aiming at triathlon) is simple: get a road bike that fits properly, get a solid bike fit on that bike, and do all of your training safely on it. Join a triathlon club, join a shopride, start getting the kilometers. The best outcome is finishing your first few triathlons comfortably and safely, in a position where you can do the full ride without sacrificing the leg strength and comfort you'll need for the run afterwards.
The bikes: road bikes vs triathlon bikes
If you decide triathlon is something you want to stick with and get better at, a second bike is often required. That's not us upselling; it's because a triathlon bike is a fundamentally different machine. The geometry, the body weight distribution, and the way the bike handles are all completely different from a road bike.
Simply installing a set of tri-bars to your road bike does not make it a triathlon bike
We have a concept we talk about a lot called "clocking forward" the rider. On a triathlon bike the seat tube is steeper, so the saddle sits higher and further forward. The rider's weight is pushed forward and down, and it ends up loaded onto their forearms rather than their hands. The whole weight distribution of the bike shifts towards the front.
That shift changes how the bike handles, and it's one of the main differences between the two. A triathlon bike's front-end stability is built around having more weight on the front end. A road bike is built around the opposite. On a tri bike the saddle can also be moved into that far-forward position easily, which is a real limitation on a standard road bike with a standard seat post angle. The saddles themselves are different. The handlebar height is different. The head tube angle is different. There are so many differences between a triathlon bike and a road bike that if you're going to get serious and competitive, you usually end up needing both. The road bike ends up where you do almost ALL your training and kms, and you practice a bit on your tri bike, fine tuning position, hydration, gear and familiarity with it’s differences.
Bike fitting: road bike position vs triathlon position
Here's the part most people don't know about when they ask us to bolt clip-ons onto their road bike.
Once you have a good road bike position, particularly if you've had a professional fit, there's a maximum hip angle your body can handle, meaning you can only lean down so far before your hip angle limitations are reached. If you exceed that angle, the leg reaches resistance on the upstroke and you lose power. As the leg comes up on the pedal stroke, the hip closes, and past a certain point it starts to get tight through the hamstring and glutes. A good fit sets you up right at the edge of that range so that you get to utilize the full length and strength of the biggest muscle (quads) to create power on the downstroke, and then utilize the glutes and hamstrings to finish the stroke without stretching and creating resistance as the pedal approaches the top of the stroke. That's why we do such a comprehensive physical assessment with bike fitting before we jump on the bike for observation; to find out where those points of resistance are exactly on your body.
Clip-on aero bars can drop your upper body lower and further forward without moving anything else. That closes the hip angle further, and in most cases it pushes the rider past their limit. Forcing the body into that position can actually reduce your power, and it can cause discomfort or injury because you've exceeded your maximum hip angle. That's why fitting tri-bars to a road bike is often not advisable, and why we don't just say yes on the phone.
Plenty of people do ride clip-ons on a standard road bike. But it's very common that their position was never adjusted for it, and both their power and their aerodynamics end up worse than if they'd left the bars in the box. Worse still, their bike leg of the event might end up being longer than it could be, or they don’t spend much time in the aero bars because they are not comfortable for long periods. A triathlon position isn't just a road position with your elbows on the bars. It's the whole rider clocked forward, with the saddle, the reach and the front end all moved to keep the hip angle open, and a position that is both comfortable for long distances AND aerodynamic. This takes time in the studio on a fitting machine like our Guru machine, with a supervised fitter, and with all the tools, knowledge, time and equipment to make the changes necessary to find that perfect position.
FAQs
How does crank length figure in here? A shorter crank can decrease the size of the pedal circle, which in turn reduces how far your knee comes up towards the chest on the upstroke, allowing you to get slightly lower and more aero without decreasing the internal hip angle. There are several concepts and theories being worked out and studied, but this is one obvious benefit of shorter cranks and the reason it's an upgrade we're increasingly being requested to do on people's bikes.
Can I improve my flexibility to get lower? Yes, Absolutely. With stretching, exercise, fitness. Yes.
Are my fit numbers permanent? No. We see age, fitness, weight loss (or gain), change in work habits, lifestyle, injuries, surgeries all affect your bike fit. Over the years we have re-fit many people that have found their original fit no longer worked for one reason or another. Big changes often demand a re-test against your original bike fit settings.
Conclusion - Advice for Beginner Triathletes
Get a road bike. Used or new, entry-level or expensive, it doesn't matter. Get a solid Bike Fitting on it first, and do your training and your first few races on that. Completing the bike leg of your event in a comfortable, safe position that you can hold for the entire ride is more important than any perceived aero gains that tri-bars might give you. Later on, when you know you're serious and have the budget for it, look at a second bike and a proper Triathlon Bike Fitting to dial in a more aero position.
At Urban Pedaler we do a comprehensive road bike fit for road riders and beginner triathletes, and if you decide you're sticking with it, we offer a reduced-price triathlon add-on fit. That's where we take your existing road fit, clock you forward, and find your optimum aero position with aero bars, properly, rather than guessing.
Come in and talk to us before you buy the bars. Here at Urban Pedaler, we've helped so many people over the years along that path towards their first tri and we've seen it all. We've done thousands of fits with a good portion of those for triathletes; female, male, young, mature, sprint distance, half and full Ironman, beginners and experienced.
Check out Urban Pedaler's Bike Fitting Services and Menu or book a Bike Fitting
